Toby's Intern
by gladysnotw
Summary: Toby's had it bad in the office, and he hopes having his own intern will give him the chance to boost his self-esteem. It doesn't take long for him to notice he's falling for her.
1. Chapter 1

Michael Scott showed her towards the kitchen, as she felt half the office staring at her. She wondered if her sweater was the thing drawing the stares. It was dandelion yellow, and it was a tad large for her. They walked through the kitchen as Michael seemed to be taking his time to take her to where she needed to go.

"This is our kitchen," he said with a sigh.

Danielle looked at the dirty counter and tried not to wince at the smell of bitter coffee that filled the air. She followed Michael to the opposite door and walked through. There, they reached the HR department. It was a lonely desk with several papers stacked on it. It looked messy, but balanced out some charm with several picture frames. Most of them consisted of a little, blonde girl. She had rosy cheeks and had a wide smile.

"Well, he's not here right now, so I will leave you, milady. He should be here in a minute."

Michael seemed in a hurry to leave as he quickly walked through the kitchen and left her alone. Danielle sighed through her nose as she looked around. She heard arguing start up in the cubicle by the HR desk. Curiously, she walked over to find a young couple arguing. The woman was Middle-Eastern, she figured, and the young man was white with dark, ebony hair.

His eye were light blue, and he had pale skin. "You looking for something?"

Danielle blinked when he spoke up. "Sorry, I was just wondering where the gentleman from HR was. I'm supposed to meet him."

The woman' eyebrows raised. "Toby?"

Danielle smiled and nodded. "Yeah, him. I was told he was going to interview me."

The couple looked behind Danielle and she turned, grimacing. A tall man with a mug in his hand was standing there. He had dark blonde hair and a dull face. He wore a suit and stared at her, silently.

"Toby, this lady is here to see you," the woman behind her blurted out.

Danielle cleared her throat as she tried to stand up straight. "Hi, I'm hereto be interviewed. I'm not sure if you're the one I'm supposed to see."

The man kept staring until he nodded. "Yeah, have a seat right there. You can, uh, use my chair. Let me.."

He looked around for something to sit on as Danielle sat down. "You _are_ Toby, right?"

A bit of the coffee in his mug spilled out as he moved around looking for a seat. It spilled on Danielle's jeans and she gave a sharp gasp and cry. Toby's face wrinkled in guilt as he apologized. He handed her a tissue box, as he decided it was best to stand. Danielle quietly wiped her jeans as best as she could as Toby gathered his words together.

"I'm so sorry about that. I didn't realize I had..poured so much in my..mug."

Toby seemed to speak very slowly. Danielle shook her head. She felt it was best not to get angry about it. She was being interviewed after all. Smiling, she ignored her burning thighs. "It's okay."

Toby replied, "Thanks. Look, we really need interns here and I think you would be great. You have an impressive resume, and we haven't had any other..applicants that were interested..so I-I think you'd be good. What do you..think?"

Danielle stared up at him. She had stressed over this interview and this was all that was required of her? To tell him what she thinks? Danielle shrugged a bit as she still tried to maintain control of herself. "I think an office is a good place to start out. I would be interning for Michael Scott, right?"

He paused. "Y-Yeah, eventually. I mean, I have to make sure you're confident and ready enough for it.'

She nodded. "Right, I understand."

He held out his hand to her. He had a gold ring on his ring finger. Danielle shook his head and smiled, gratefully. "Thanks so much. So, do I start tomorrow?"

Toby shook his head. "Today. I want you to..help me organize these papers on my desk."

He felt a sense of joy out of telling her what to do. Not something he could do often in the office. Danielle gave a nod as she got to work. He watched her and stared at her blonde braid. Her hand was soft and she seemed very kind. "Well, welcome to the office."


	2. Chapter 2

Danielle sat as the camera crew questioned her on first impressions on Toby and the office. She raised her eyebrows and gave a small shrug.

"I'm really just grateful to actually be on the road to getting a job. I just wish my boss didn't have strong coffee breath...don't tell him I said that," she said, quickly.

As she left the conference room, Danielle returned to the HR department, which was really just Toby's desk. He was typing away on his computer and turned when she approached her. "Do you need me to do something for you, sir?"

Toby thought long and hard. He had never really given anyone any orders before. Well, he had, but they never really paid much attention to him. Danielle noticed the pictures on his desk again: The small blonde girl with her wide smile.

"Is that your daughter?"

Toby looked at the photos with a smile. "Yeah, she's...she's a sweetheart. She's a little older now."

"She kind of reminds me of my cousin."

Toby nodded and quickly remembered that she had asked if he needed anything. He looked at his desk and remembered he needed Michael's signature on a few documents. He tried earlier, but Michael shut his office door in his face when he asked.

"Can you get Michael to sign these? Toby asked, handing her the small stack.

Danielle nodded. "Yeah, no problem."

As she got up, Toby opened his mouth to speak and she froze.

"If..if he slams the door in your face, l-let me know," he said, quietly.

She stared at him and started to chuckle. Toby didn't even smile, and she stopped. "I'm sorry..were you serious?"

"Did I look like I was kidding?"

She held her tongue at his response and slowly walked away. Toby turned to the camera crew, awkwardly. They surrounded his desk and asked him a few questions. Toby kept his usual face as he tried to reply without stuttering.

"I'm just trying to, uh, maintain my position. Technically, I'm like her boss, so I don't, you know...I don't want her to doubt it," he replied, stuttering and speaking in a bit of a mumble.

Danielle hurried to Michael's office and knocked on the door. She heard his voice from inside saying, "Yeah?"

She opened the door and he raised his eyebrows at her.

"I need you to sign these forms for me, please," she said, handing him the stack.

Michael sighed through his mouth, loudly, as he looked through the papers. "Where's this from?"

"It's from HR, Toby asked me-"

Michael slid the papers off his desk and shook his head. "No, no, no, no, no, noooooo."

Danielle stared in shock at the papers on the floor. "Sir?"

"If it's from Toby, I don't care," Michael said as he stared at his computer.

Danielle frowned at him. "He needs them as soon as possible, sir."

Michael looked at her and pointed a finger at her. "Yeah? Well, you can tell him to kiss my-"

"Michael?"

Both looked to the door and saw Toby standing there. he glanced at Danielle and the stack on the floor. He shook his head and asked, "Can I talk to you?"

"No, get out. And take your...sidekick with you," Michael said, looking at Danielle.

"Sidekick?" Danielle repeated.

Toby stepped into the office and said, "Look, Michael, I just need you to sign these documents. That's all. Y-You don't need to make a scene."

Danielle stared at Michael and then at the papers on the floor. Toby spoke calmly as Michael stared at him, unmoved. "Who is this, anyway?"

"I'm the new intern you hired," Danielle replied, in annoyance.

"How come you get a hot intern and I don't?"

Danielle blushed and grimaced at the same time. She rubbed the back of her neck and held her arm, trying not to make eye contact with either of the men in the office. Suddenly, a man rushed in asking, "What is it, Michael? Are you hurt?"

The man had brown hair and huge glasses. He was very tall and pursed out his lips as he spoke. Michael sighed at the sight of him, and replied, "No, Dwight, this..would you get out?"

Danielle stared at Dwight, who squinted his eyes at her, suspiciously. He acted like someone out of a cartoon. "Who are you? Which clan do you come from?"

She blinked. "Excuse me?"

"God, what is wrong with you? Would you, please, leave, Dwight?" Michael asked, irritated.

Dwight pointed at Danielle as he walked out. "You watch yourself, Daenerys."

Michael shook his head at Dwight. "Harry Potter nerd."

Danielle grimaced at that as Toby cleared his throat. Michael stared at him, hatefully. Danielle bent down to pick up the papers as Toby watched. "Michael, this could be seen as a-abusive behavior and the last thing I want to do is write you up again."

As she picked up the papers, Danielle noticed Michael's mug: WORLD'S BEST BOSS. She couldn't help but smile to herself at that. Suddenly, she got an idea and stood up. "It's okay. I just...I just messed up. It isn't Michael's fault. I mean, he's a great boss. The best, actually."

Michael stared at her, almost smitten. Toby blinked as he stared at Danielle. She continued, "I should've known better than to upset you. It's my fault, boss."

To Toby's surprise, Michael shifted in his seat and cleared his throat. His eyes fell upon his desk as he guiltily avoided Danielle's gaze. Michael took a pen and motioned for her to hand him the stack. She smiled wide and handed it to him saying, "Thank you. We'll leave you to yourself until you're done."

Danielle motioned for Toby to follow her, and Michael blushed. The door closed and the both of them sighed in relief. Toby stared at her, astonished. "How did you.."

"Wasn't hard," she replied, softly.

Toby swallowed and nodded. "Well...thanks. Listen, if you could check up on him..a-and make sure he signs-"

She nodded. "Yeah, sure."


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, Danielle missed her alarm clock, and arrived to work late. She hurried into the office, making the receptionist pop her head. She stared as Danielle put her small scarf on the rack by the front desk.

"Is Mr. Flenderson in yet?"

Pam blinked at that. "Toby? Yeah, he should be at his desk."

Danielle mumbled a quick thank you as she hurried into the kitchen to head to Toby's desk. He wasn't there. She grimace at that, and headed towards the reception desk before Toby appeared out of Michael's office. He didn't look too happy. But, then again, Toby always had this frown pasted to his face.

"I'm so sorry, I know, I'm late-"

He shook his head and just walked past her. "We need to go over something. Come on."

Danielle followed him, nervously. She bit her lip as he sat at his desk. He clicked his pen several times before speaking. "Michael accidentally ran over an employee with his car, and corporate-"

She gasped. "What?"

"According to Michael, she's in the hospital so that means that you have some paperwork to fill out. Michael's planning some kind of fundraiser for her, and i-it's just...we're just going with it, okay? I just need you to stay here and fill out everything for me."

"What kind of fundraiser?"

Toby gave a small chuckle as he replied, "He's calling it a 'fun-run'."

She raised her eyebrows. "A fun-run?"

"He's getting the whole office to run in a small marathon."

Danielle nodded. "Okay, but who's the employee he ran over?"

"Meredith, we visited her before you got here. You didn't miss much."

"Gotcha. When's the marathon?"

"Tomorrow, he said," Toby replied.

The marathon was being treated with total apathy from everyone. Only $700 were raised, and Michael kept insisting on investing in a giant check. Everyone gathered outside to prepare and stretch before the marathon. Danielle spotted Toby stretching as Michael placed a large photo of Meredith on a canvas.

"Aren't you gonna stretch?" Toby asked her.

"I already did, thanks," she replied with a smile.

Pam walked by as Toby stole a glance at her. She smiled at Danielle and gave her a small greeting nod.

"Hey," Danielle said in a small voice.

The camera crew approached Danielle and asked if she had ever ran a marathon.

She stretched her arms as she replied, "No, I haven't. But, anything to get out of the office is nice. It's not too hot today. I'm not much of a runner, though."

Michael announced the marathon was about to begin as everyone gathered around. "Just remember, folks, it is not about winning! It is about finishing!"

Dwight held up a gun as he yelled, "On your marks.."

Danielle stood by Toby as she took a deep breath. Suddenly, she heard Toby groan as Michael pulled his shorts down from behind.

"..get set..."

Everyone flinched when Dwight fired the pistol and the marathon had officially begun. Sneakers squeaked on the pavement as they everyone jogged through the front gate. Danielle passed by several people, and was surprised that Toby managed to keep up.

"I thought you weren't a runner," he panted.

"I'm not. Guess I'm just lucky today. Besides I'm mostly jogging than running," Danielle replied as they rounded a corner.

The neighborhood was very well-situated and clean. Danielle slowed down a bit to admire the pretty houses. Toby noticed her slow down and did the same. He noticed her wearing short short, and cleared his throat.

"Nice weather, huh?"

She nodded. "Yeah, thank God."

He seemed to be doing just fine as she struggled to catch her breath. They continued going as Danielle struggled to keep up with him.

"How do you do it?"

"I don't know. I'm making good time aren't I? Usually I have to take a bathroom break halfway through a race like this, but not today," Toby explained.

She smiled at everything he said, and kept going. "That's good."

They continued running together as they saw a table ahead of them. Kelly was seated right next to it, texting. Her big, pink sunglasses made Danielle giggle a bit. Toby ran ahead of her and threw his hands up in victory.

"And the winner..is Toby Flenderson!"

Kelly didn't look up from her phone and said, "Have a seat, I'll write it down."

Danielle jogged to the end and took a seat. Toby looked around t see if anyone else had shown up.

"Pam's not here yet?"

"I don't think so," Kelly replied as she texted.

As everyone made their way to the end, Danielle spotted Pam and Jim arriving together. They giggled with each other and she noticed Toby looking at them with an uneasy face. She pretended not to notice and wiped sweat from her forehead. The staff walked back to the office as Danielle walked by herself behind everyone. She noticed Angela wiping her nose and sniffling.

"You okay?"

"No," Angela replied, quietly.

"You...want to talk about it?"

"It's too soon for me."

The Hispanic gentleman who sat by Angela in Accounting stood by Danielle and whispered, "Her cat died."

Danielle raised her eyebrows at that. She hesitantly put a hand on Angela's shoulder. "I'm sorry. That sounds..awful."

Angela suddenly cried harder and hugged Danielle. She stood there, awkwardly as she patted her back. Jim and Pam were in the parking lot saying goodbye to each other with Toby staring. He looked miserable whenever he laid eyes on them. Danielle looked down and hugged Angela tighter.

It was an odd day.


	4. Chapter 4

Danielle was making copies when she heard Michael holding a memo in his hand.

"Hey, Toby, what's this?"

He read the memo outloud, explaining the issues of public displays of affection in the workplace. Danielle made a face, unaware of Toby informing her of any memo. Toby quietly nodded at Michael.

"Some people have complained about other people engaging in PDA. I just wanted to remind everyone that its not okay to do that."

Slowly, Danielle entered the break room with her copies in hand, wanting to avoid the conflict. The camera crew followed and she knew what was coming. More questions.

"I just don't like watching Michael arguing with my boss. It's kind of painful to watch your boss get yelled at and then take orders from him. It kind of feels like he takes his frustrations on me instead of Michael."

"To be honest, I think my boss could stand up for himself once in a while."

She peeked out the break room door and noticed Toby was coming. Quickly, she hurried to HR and took her seat by his chair. She heard him come in and sit down. He was frowning and his eyes looked sad.

"I...made you the copies you asked for."

Danielle's small hand placed them on his desk, but he said nothing. Trying to ease the silence, she pretended to cough.

"So, what do we have on the agenda for today?"

Toby swallowed before answering. "Nothing. You can go home, if you want."

She blinked. "Huh?"

He ran his hands down his face as he sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm just tired."

Danielle slid her palms on her thighs as she tried to think of what to say next. "I could get you a Redbull."

"It's..not that kind of tired."

"Hey, Toby!"

A chipper voice made them turn and Toby suddenly smiled as he said, "Hey, Pam...you two."

Jim was holding Pam's hand as they wore big smiles on their faces. Jim spoke up and said, "We just wanted to know, now that we're dating, you know, if we needed to sign one of those "we're dating" things for the company."

Stuttering with his words, Toby replied, "Oh, well, you know, those are for...relationships. So if it's a casual thing, there's no need, really."

Danielle grimaced as she and Pam made eye contact for a moment. Pam looked at Jim, excitedly, and said, "Well, I don't wanna speak for Jim, but it's like pretty official. So do we need to sign one or-"

"Let's just wait."

Jim raised his eyebrows. "What?"

"Let's just wait and see what happens," Toby replied, casually.

Pam and Jim glanced at each other with a shrug, and bought into it. "Okay, then."

"Yeah, okay," Pam agreed as they walked off, merrily.

Toby turned to his computer as Danielle finally understood. She found it a bit unsettling to know Pam didn't catch on, but she and Jim seemed happy. They looked as if nothing could intervene with their happiness. That made her smile.

"They look nice, huh?"

Toby quickly stood up and said, "Could you make more copies?"

Danielle stared up at him and asked, "Of what?"

"Something," Toby said as he left the room to use the bathroom.

Kelly Kapoor popped her head out of her small corner and smiled at Danielle. "Oh my God, he's totally into you."

Cheeks burning, Danielle sat, unsure of what to say. "Who?"

"Toby! He always gets so nervous around you, it's super obvious."

Danielle didn't know what she was feeling so timid about. Toby was a bit shy and spoke very quietly to pretty much everybody. He seemed nervous all the time.

"I have to make copies, Kelly," Danielle muttered, grabbing the closest piece of paper on Toby's desk.

The camera crew followed until they spotted Michael in his office. Danielle placed the paper in the copy machine and pressed the green start button. As the machine got into gear, Danielle noticed Angela crying at her desk. She slowly approached the sobbing blonde, and bit her lip.

"Is it Sprinkles again?"

Angela wiped her tears with a tissue.

Danielle gently put a hand on Angela's shoulder. She stood there as the copy machine had stopped making noises. Pam went up to the copy machine and noticed someone hadn't taken their copies. She opened the lid and took out the single copy to read it.

"Danielle?"

Raising her eyebrows, Danielle turned to see Pam at the machine. "Oh! God, I'm sorry. I forgot."

Pam handed Danielle the single copy and the 10 copies that were printed. She froze when she saw what was written on the copies. Two words: 'Dear Danielle'.

They were written on the top left corner of the paper. Danielle felt herself turning red as she hurried across the office. Gasping, she bumped into Toby, as he exited the conference room, and all the copies fell to the floor. Quickly, she knelt down and gathered them all up.

"Are those the copies?" Toby inquired.

Danielle shook her head as she held the messy stack of papers close to her chest. He noticed her gripping the papers so nervously and grew more curious.

"Are those from Michael?"

"No, these are for me," Danielle replied, hastily.

"For you..from Michael? Because I'd have to see them if they're from Mich-"

Danielle rushed past him and into the break room. She entered the ladies room, and into a stall. Locking the stall with one hand, she kept holding the copies with the other. She sat on the toilet and exhaled deeply. Carefully, she took one copy of paper and put the rest in the toilet. Then, flushed. She folded her copy as she thought she heard someone walk into the bathroom. The red head near accounting. Danielle couldn't remember her name, but she exited the bathroom, running into Toby, as he stood in the kitchen.

"Whoa-" he said as she bumped into him.

He noticed the folded paper, but said nothing.

"Were you waiting for me?" Danielle asked, tucking a stray hair behind her ear.

"No, I just..."

"Look, I should get back to work, sir," Danielle insisted.

Toby cleared his throat, as if to muster courage to speak. "You work f-for me. I need you to get back to HR, and just...stay there, please."

Danielle put the paper in her pocket and quietly exited the kitchen to return to their desk. She sat down and stared at his computer. After a few minutes, she removed the paper from her pocket and placed it on the keyboard. Unfolding it, she read the two words over and over again.

Kelly appeared from her desk and Danielle quickly grabbed the paper. "What is that?"

Danielle lowered her eyes. "Nothing. I.."

"Is it from Toby? Is it a love letter? I can read it if you're too scared-"

"Mr. Flenderson isn't in-"

Toby entered from the kitchen and made the two women stop talking. Kelly smiled wide and gave Toby a small "hey" before going back to her corner. Toby glanced at Danielle and the piece of paper in her hand. Gently, he held out his hand to her.

"Let me see."

Slowly, she placed the paper in his hand, and said, "I'm sorry."

He read it and his cheeks turned red. Nervously, he put the paper on his desk. He scratched the back of his neck and pretended to cough.

"Look, uh...are you..free for tonight?"

Danielle tried not to smile. "Tonight..."

"Maybe we could..have dinner..?"

The smile won the battle as she put on a big one. "Okay."


	5. Chapter 5

Toby glanced at his desk, as Danielle hadn't spoken to him since she had arrived. She placed a pile of copies at his desk and they shared a thin line of a smile.

"Yeah, I backed out on the, uh, dinner date. I...guess I just got butterflies. To be honest, I just found it inappropriate to date your boss. Frankly, I...probably shouldn't discuss it on camera," Danielle said to the camera as she twiddle her fingers.

"I just wanted dinner. Nothing fancy. I...made a reservation and everything," Toby said, avoiding eye contact with the camera.

Kelly stared at Danielle as she ate her strawberry yogurt alone in the break room. She sat down by her and sighed. "I totally know what you're going through."

Daniellle didn't move a muscle on her face. "What?"

"I heard that you had a date with Toby. And judging by how you're not speaking to each other-"

They stopped as Jim Halpert walked in to make some coffee. Kelly gasped and rushed over to him and started talking at 100 miles per hour. Danielle took advantage and left the room to the main office. Toby noticed her escape Kelly's jabbering and followed.

"Toby, hey," Jim said, suddenly, thankful for the distraction.

Toby ignored him and entered the main office. Danielle sense him following her and left the office for the elevators.

"Hey, Danielle," Toby called out, in a low voice.

"I have to make a call,' she lied as she pressed a random floor number inside the elevator.

The HR rep hadn't been sure of many things in his life, but this definitely felt right to him. His hand stopped the doors from closing as he entered the elevator. Danielle leaned against the wall and tensed.

"Mr. Flenderson, I really don't think-"

"Look, I just want to-"

The doors closed as the elevator moved on its way with both of them inside. Danielle held her breath as her boss stood in silence. Toby rubbed the back of his neck, timidly.

"Danielle...I like you."

She felt her cheeks burning. "Sir, I know that y-you probably think-"

Toby wasn't an expert with women, but being married previously seemed like enough experience. Slowly, he closed his eyes and leaned forward. Danielle looked at him with wide eyes until the elevator jolted.

They both fell to the floor. The elevator had stopped so suddenly. She landed on her back and Toby landed on her. Danielle groaned as she tried to get him off. Toby panicked.

"Oh, God.." he mumbled as he tried to get up.

They squirmed to different corners of the elevator, gasping for air. Danielle held herself and stared at him in shock.

"Were you seriously about to kiss me?"

"I..no, I-"

"Yes, you were!"

She didn't want to move from her corner, but she stood up. Toby panted loudly as he couldn't meet her eyes. Danielle moved her attention to the buttons and pressed the red emergency one. Her hands went to her pockets but she was wearing a skirt.

"Do you have your phone?"

Toby shook his head.

She sighed and pressed the emergency button again. Her fist banged on the doors as she yelled out, "Can anybody hear me? We're stuck!"

Toby looked at his watch, and felt his stomach turn. It was barely two hours into the shift. They would be trapped for hours if no one else came.

"Hello? Somebody!"

"I don't think anybody's coming," Toby muttered.

Danielle glanced at him. "This is your fault."

He grimaced at her, "My fault?"

"If you hadn't followed me, I could've been stuck in here myself," she replied, covering her face with her hands.

He wasn't the best at arguing so he left it at that. Danielle banged on the door again, making him feel a headache coming. He got to his feet, making Danielle freeze and point at him.

"Stay away from me-"

"I'm just getting up."

"Well...stay in your corner," Danielle pleaded as she leaned against the wall again.

"What did you think was going to happen last night?"

Danielle tensed. "Just stop talking."

"I'm just asking-"

"Unlike you, I don't drool over my co-workers," Danielle spat.

Toby stared at her. "I don't...I don't drool over anybody. Are you jealous or something?"

She rolled her eyes in her mind, as she stopped looking at him. She leaned against the wall on her side and looked at the metal doors.

Toby repeated his question.

"I don't even want to talk to you. Just...leave me alone," Danielle replied.

The two remained quiet for about 10 minutes. Danielle banged on the doors every five.

"Would you mind not doing that?" Toby asked.

She ignored him and did it again. He tried to focus on something else. He noticed her hair was in the usual braid. She looked pretty. Her face was so...fair. And he never really described anyone as fair before.

"Hello?! Somebody get us out!" Danielle cried with her hands cupped around her mouth.

Toby had begun drumming his fingers on his lap, remembering how he would sit his daughter there. Danielle felt herself tense as she the desire to use the bathroom had come up. She shut her eyes and bit her lip. Toby noticed her legs tense together and he immediately knew what was wrong, but said nothing.

30 minutes had already gone by. Danielle paced the elevator, trying to distract her desire to pee. Toby closed his eyes and tried to think of Pam. Her smile and small voice that seemed to grow louder when Jim was around. Ugh, Jim. Toby shook his head at the thought of him.

Danielle was looking patience as she tried to separate the elevator doors with her hands. Toby quickly reacted and tried to pull her away.

"Get off me!"

"You can't open the doors! You'll hurt yourself," Toby scolded.

"Let go!"

He had held her wrists in his hands and pulled her away. "Stop!"

"Let me-"

She kicked his leg and he groaned aloud. He let her go as she hurried back to the door and banged on it again. "Somebody! Help! Help me!"

Toby slumped to the floor as he put a hand on his leg. "Why did you do that?"

Danielle narrowed her eyes, "Don't touch me!"

"No," he shook his head, "Why didn't you come? Last night?"

She stared at him and felt a lump in her throat. "You don't like me. I'm just a distraction for you, and you can't even admit it!"

"Distraction from what?"

"Pam doesn't even love you, and you can't accept it. You never...accept it."

Toby felt sick. Danielle looked away and banged on the metal doors over and over. He felt his headache get worse as he held a hand on his stomach and his leg. Leaning forward, he coughed aloud. Danielle stopped and grimaced in disgust.

"Oh my God, don't puke in here."

"Then...stop," Toby gurgled.

Danielle moved from the doors and back to her corner as Toby slowed his breathing. He managed to regain himself and sat in a normal position.

"Thank you," he whispered, closing his eyes.


	6. Chapter 6

Toby lifted his head up when he heard the elevator doors shake. Danielle stood up, with her arms folded, and watched the doors open normally. Creed appeared and they stared, blankly.

Creed had his hair sticking up and colored jet black. Danielle debated whether she should say anything about his appearance as he pushed the correct button for their floor.

"Creed...how did you open-"

"Oh, it's no problemo. I get stuck in the elevator every week. Just need a firm, youthful hand to open it," Creed replied with his back to the two of them.

Toby blinked. "You...get stuck in the elevator every week?"

The old man gave a casual shrug. "Like I said, dude, no problemo."

They reached their floor as the elevator dinged. The doors opened and Creed stepped out first. Toby exited next with Danielle following behind. They both stood in silence as they gave sighs of relief.

Awkwardly, Danielle walked faster ahead and back into the office. Pam noticed her and gave her a tiny smile.

"Oh, hey, Toby," Pam chirped as Toby entered the office.

"Hey," Toby replied, with a smile of relief.

Danielle went to the break room and opened the fridge. She pulled out her paper bag of lunch and sat down. A toilet flushed as Kevin came out of the bathroom eating a bagel. Danielle grimaced with disgust, before giving him a fake smile when he noticed her sitting there.

"Hey," he said, in a low voice.

She sipped her juice box. "Hi."

Toby opened the break room door and Danielle smiled wider. "You're Kevin, right?"

Kevin blinked as he swallowed some of the bagel in his mouth. "Yeah."

Toby opened the fridge and took out his paper bag lunch, as well.

"We should get a coffee sometime," Danielle told Kevin as her eyes were on Toby.

The large man noticed her staring at Toby and paused. "Are you talking to...me?"

Danielle blushed as Toby looked at her from the fridge. She stuttered and replied, "Y-Yeah. Yeah, I'm Danielle, by the way."

"Okay," Kevin said as he bit his bagel.

He walked out of the break room, as Toby sat down in front of her. "Classy, Danielle."

She lowered her eyes to her juice and sipped it loudly. Toby pulled out a ham sandwich from his bag, and shook his head.

"Look...about the elevator, I'm sorry-"

Danielle felt herself tense. "I'm sorry. Okay? I just can't talk to you right now."

"But you can flirt in front of me?"

To her surprise, Danielle hadn't expected Toby to get defensive. It wasn't his strongest quality. In all honesty, she liked it. But, she kept thinking about Pam and how he acted around her.

"If you're going to fire me-"

He shook his head. "I'm not firing you. I'm just...trying to talk to you."

Danielle sipped her juice box, despite it being empty. Toby put his sandwich down and reached out to hold her hand as it sat on the table. The break room door opened and he stopped.

Jim popped his head inside. "Hey, I know you guys are having lunch but Michael's called everyone into the conference room, and we're waiting on you guys."

"Okay," Danielle nodded.

Jim smiled and closed the door. Danielle looked at Toby, who had shied away. He eyed his sandwich, and sat in silence.

"We should go," Danielle said as she picked up bag of lunch.

Nervously, Toby scratched his ear and gave a quiet, "Yeah."

They entered the conference room and only found room for them to sit together and by Creed. Michael stood up front with pictures on the wall that Danielle couldn't make out. She felt Toby staring at her from her right side and tried to ignore it.

The meeting began, but Toby's stare kept her from focusing. Michael went on about elderly and the discrimination they face in the workplace.

Clearing his throat, Michael pulled out a crumpled piece of paper his pocket and read aloud, "Did you know that the Age Discrimination Act of 1967 prohibits employment discrimination based on age with respect to employees 40 years or older?"

Everyone slowly turned their attention to Toby, who was sitting with his chin resting on his fist. "Mmm, technically, he's right."

Michael pointed his finger at Toby. "Hey, shut up, Toby."

Danielle, instinctively grimaced and said, "He just agreed with you."

Michael went on with his speech, ignoring her comment. Jim glanced at her with a shrug and she shook her head, dropping the subject. Toby made eye contact with her, and she tried not to react. The camera crew asked her to answer some questions, and she gladly cooperated.

She took a deep breath as the questions began.

"I'm having a rough time fitting in with this job. Sometimes, I feel like I'm Mr. Flenderson's Stress Toy. Michael yells at him, and then he makes my job harder by taking it out on me. And...especially when he tries to ask me out, and bats his eyes at..Pam."

She played with her fingers, as the conference room meeting. Danielle noticed Toby coming out as well, and she excused herself from the one-on-one interview. He approached her and quietly asked if they could speak outside. She looked around the room to see if anyone was staring, but they weren't. She gave a nod, and they exited the office to talk by the elevators.

Toby put his hands in his coat pockets and sighed. "Look, I just...I've been trying to make sense of the night before. You didn't even call, you just texted me that you weren't coming at the last minute."

Danielle, shamefully, stared at the floor.

"And, I just don't know what I did wrong. And it's really awkward...being together at work after that happened," he continued.

"I...I just don't think I'm ready for something like this," she replied, as she rubbed her arm.

"I just want a chance. One chance to prove that...I can be enough for you."

Her eyes lifted up. "I don't know."

"Please?" Toby pleaded, quietly.

She was glad the cameras weren't around as she tried to smile at him. "Okay."

He lifted his eyebrows, surprised. "Okay?"

"Yes."


	7. Chapter 7

Danielle sat by herself at the restaurant Toby asked her to go to. She played with her side braid a bit, as he waited for him to show up. The waitress came by for the second time, and smiled warmly.

"All set to order?"

Danielle looked at the menu in front of her as it sat on the table. She glanced at the other menu from across the table, and sighed at the empty chair before her.

"I'll just have some Strawberry Lemonade, if you have any," Danielle said as she opened her menu.

The waitress gave a quick nod. "Be right back with that."

Finally, her eyes lit up when she saw Toby arrive. He pulled out his chair and cleared his throat.

"Sorry. I know I'm late."

She didn't quite know how to maintain a friendly conversation so she replied, "It's okay."

The restaurant was lovely. White table cloths, round tables, fancy menus, and a bright chandelier hanging from the ceiling. The waiters wore tuxedos and their was a pianist playing slow music on the other side of the room.

"This place is really nice," Danielle commented.

Toby smiled a bit. "Yeah, it is. My ex-"

Danielle quickly lowered her eyes to the menu to avoid bringing attention to his mistake. Toby also grabbed his menu and cleared his throat. "D-Did uh. you have trouble finding it?"

She shook her head. "No, it was okay."

Toby put his menu down when he saw the waitress coming with Danielle's beverage. She smiled at the waitress and thanked her.

"Sorry, I just ordered a drink. I was..kind of thirsty," Danielle apologized to Toby.

"It's fine," he assured her.

She felt embarrassed. "I didn't know what drink you wanted. I should've asked-"

He held up his hand and tried to smile it off. "It's really fine. I'll just have a water with ice."

The waitress wrote that down and asked, "You two ready to order or do you still need a minute?"

The two of them were ready, and they ordered. Once the waitress was gone, Danielle sipped her drink. Toby rested his arms on the table, and stared at her. "So...h-how's everything?"

She tried not to smile so big. "Everything is going well, thanks. How about you?"

"Good, it's good."

She just noticed he was wearing a suit. Nicer than the one he normally wore to work. His hand reached for hers as the waitress came back with Danielle's salad she had ordered, as an appetizer. He blushed and pulled away. Danielle moved her hand as the waitress placed the plate on the table.

"Here, you go, honey. Be right back with yours, sir," the waitress smiled.

Danielle tried not to have noticed his attempt at holding her hand, and stared at her salad.

"You can...go ahead and eat," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Oh, no, I can wait for yours to get here!"

He didn't expect that and smiled a bit.

"H-How long have you worked at Dunder Mifflin?" Danielle asked, sipping her lemonade.

Toby chuckled a bit as he shook his head. "Too long."

She knew he would say that and smiled, amused. Toby sat up straight and watched to see if the waitress was coming.

"Any plans besides working in HR?" Toby asked her.

Danielle gave a small shrug. "Not really. I like photography, but that's not really a solid thing, from what I hear."

The waitress brought Toby's salad and thanked then for their patience. When she left, they started eating. Toby ate slowly, and Danielle did the same. He noticed her gazing at the pianist playing from time to time. He smiled a bit at that.

"You like piano?"

"A little. I used to play a lot when I still had mine. It's at my mom's place, and I don't see her much since she's kind of far away. But I always liked classical music," Danielle replied as she slightly covered her mouth with her hand to hide her chewing.

Toby looked impressed. "You should play for me one day."

She admired his attempts at being charming and smiled. They continued eating, as the main dishes arrived. Danielle had ordered sushi with a side of shrimp. Toby had a steak and a side of shrimp.

"This sushi is really good," Danielle gasped as she ate.

He couldn't help but take in her glowing smile. Everything seemed to bring her joy or amazement. As if she was born yesterday. He noticed her hand on the table again, and debated reaching for it. As the night went in, they continued their small talk. Danielle gave a small yawn, and Toby glanced at his watch. It was nearly eleven.

"Should I get the check?"

She blushed. "I'm sorry. I don't know why I'm so tired."

"All the food, probably," he replied with a smile.

They made their way out after they paid, and he walked her to her car. Danielle unlocked the car door, and tossed her purse inside. She turned to face Toby and say goodbye.

"I'll see you at work tomorrow, then," she said, with a small smile.

He nodded at that. "Yeah, sounds good."

His eyes looked at her lips, and he slowly leaned forward. Danielle felt her stomach tighten when she saw his eyes close. His face leaned in and she gulped.

"Toby.."

He froze and opened his eyes. Shamefully, he stepped back and scratched his ear. "Sorry."

She tried not to make him feel more embarrassed and shook her head. Slowly, she got in her car and closed the door. He stepped aside as her car backed out. He didn't even look at her as she drove away. Sluggishly, he made his way to where he parked. Sitting in his car, he remained with his thoughts for several minutes. It wasn't a total disaster, but he always made things awkward or difficult. Turning his keys in the gear, the car started and he sighed aloud.

He drove off into the night, and dreamed of his HR assistant.


End file.
